Part 5: Interrogation
"When my daddy finds out about this, it'll be your head." Mandy's voice was carried into the small observation room through the intercom set up in her interrogation chamber. Sam watched from behind a one-way mirror as Mandy fumed at the WOOHP agent from her seat at the end of a long table, gripping the edge tight enough to turn her knuckles white. Alex stood beside Sam, talking into her compowder on a somewhat unrelated topic. They were both wearing their WOOHP uniforms.
"Listen, if you tell us where she went, we promise to give you immunity for the crimes you committed." The interrogating officer offered for the fifth time. Mandy howled in frustration and pounded her fists on the table.
"I told you I'm not telling you! Now either let me go or lock me up!" Mandy screamed angrily. Sam shook her head. Why was Mandy fighting so vehemently on Clover's side? Weren't they enemies? Didn't Clover invite the violence at Mandy's house that brought it crumbling to the ground?
"Yeah, I got it." Alex said into her compowder. She pushed it closed as Sam looked over at her curiously. "Your credit card was used for two tickets to Lyrobia, but neither one of them was ever used." Alex told her.
"So they bought two tickets and decided to stay in the United States after all? I don't buy it." Sam replied. "They must have been trying to leave the country..."
"Maybe it's a trick?" Alex suggested. Sam nodded. It was completely possible for Clover to have used cash or something... but that didn't make any sense. If she had Sam's credit card why bother using anything else? To confuse her? Maybe the information was wrong...
Sam quickly shook her head. There was no reason for the airport to lie, and she trusted Alex with her life. They must have bought the tickets to Lyrobia in order to hide their real destination through the credit report. Clover wasn't typically so devious and underhanded... but she typically wasn't a murderer or a thief either.
"I told you to bug off!" Mandy's shout echoed through the intercom, interrupting Sam's thought process. Sam growled and left the observation room, walking up to the guard in front of the interrogation room.
"You think I could try to get some information out of her for a while?" The guard looked at her curiously. "We have to find Clover as quickly as possible."
"If you want, good luck though. We have to be extra gentle with this one." The guard told her as he moved into the interrogation room to get the other interrogator out. Alex walked up beside Sam, but Sam grabbed her shoulder, pushing her back.
"Stay out here Alex, I want to talk with her." Sam stated as the guards left the door to the interrogation room open behind them. Sam walked inside, pushing it closed behind her and leaning against it. She stared at Mandy, who looked her up and down with a smirk.
"Look who's the big fancy spy." Mandy scoffed. "Honestly, a bright green jumpsuit? Shouldn't a spy wear black or something?"
"I'm not here to discuss fashion with you Mandy." Sam calmly walked to the chair opposite her at the table and sat down. "We've never been friends, but I need you to help me out here."
"Yeah, your government buddy said the same thing. Why should I respond to you any differently?" Mandy asked. Sam clenched one fist in frustration, glaring at Mandy across the table. "What, are you gonna hit me? Please, my dad would have you hung and your corpse left to dry in the sun." Sam's hand relaxed, resting on the table while Sam closed her eyes. "Are you done already?"
"This isn't a game. The man I thought of as my own father is dead Mandy." Sam opened her eyes, staring into Mandy's large violet orbs. "You think I want to believe Clover did it? Do you think I like hunting down my best friend in the world?"
"I think you enjoy having me under your power." Mandy scoffed.
"Right now I'd love nothing more than to be at home curling up with a good book." Sam sneered, pushing herself to her feet. "But instead I'm here trying to get you to help me find Clover." She walked around the table, putting one hand on it and leaning against it. "Now work with me here. For all we know Clover could be planning something..."
"Best friend in the world my ass." Mandy sneered, staring into Sam's eyes with contempt. "You're talking about hunting her down like some kind of dog. Doesn't sound like you feel like a friend to her."
"The facts are what they are. No amount of feelings can change them." Sam countered.
"Facts can be forged."
"And feelings can be manipulated." Sam stared at Mandy steadily, not looking away for even an instant. Mandy stared back, as if trying to force Sam to see things her way. Finally Mandy looked down at the table while Sam let a smirk creep across her lips. "And if anyone knows something about manipulation, it's you."
"Fuck you." Mandy spat, looking up at her again with a disgusted smirk. "Sure I manipulate the pitiful morons who let me control them. But at least I never turned on any of them the way you're turning on Clover."
"SHE turned on ME!" Sam slammed her fist down on the table, causing Mandy to jump in surprise as the bang echoed throughout the empty room. "She's a killer Mandy. All of the evidence points to it. I can't fight hard facts, and neither can you. Now tell me where she went."
"I don't really care if she did kill some stupid old guy." Mandy sneered. "I'm not telling you anything, because you piss me off." She yelped when Sam's hand lashed out, grabbing the front of her purple vest and pulling her face close to Sam's. Her emerald green eyes were narrowed dangerously. Mandy stared back, not giving an inch even as Sam's grip tightened.
Sam reached into one pocket of her jumpsuit, taking out a picture and slamming it down on the table. She grabbed a fistful of Mandy's hair and shoved Mandy's face roughly down toward it. Mandy slammed her hands into the table to keep her forehead from slamming into it, struggling to move away from it though Sam kept her there.
"That is the 'stupid old guy' that died last week Mandy." Sam told her darkly, her fist clutching Mandy's dark hair tightly. "I spent the last year looking up to him. He was always there for us, and we were always there for him. Now he's DEAD, and I don't even really know why. All evidence points to Clover's involvement, so I WILL find Clover and find out what's going on."
Mandy growled, her fingernails scraping against the steel table as she struggled to move away from the picture. "Let me go..."
Sam bent down beside her, yelling in her ear. "Tell me where Clover is!"
"NO!" Mandy squeezed her eyes shut in pain as Sam's grip on her hair tightened. Mandy refused to cry out in pain, she wasn't about to give Sam that satisfaction. The contest of wills continued for several minutes until Sam finally grunted and thrust Mandy back by her hair, slamming her into the back of her seat.
"You'll talk eventually... even if we have to get your father's permission to take more drastic measures..." Sam pushed herself away from Mandy, marching to the door.
"Go ahead, as if Clover was ever really your friend anyway. I once thought I was her worst enemy at school... but it looks like you fill that position nicely." Mandy stated. Sam ignored her, leaving the room and pulling the door closed behind her, leaning against it. Alex was leaning against the wall beside the door, watching her.
"Get anything?" Alex asked softly.
"No... we're gonna have to call him." Sam pushed herself away from the door, running one hand through her long red hair. Alex nodded and turned to follow her down the hall, but stopped and watched Sam walk ahead. She looked back at the interrogation room door and approached it, pushing it open. Mandy was sitting on the other side of the desk with her head down wearily. The moment she heard the door Mandy lifted her head in proud defiance.
"You want a turn now?" Mandy sneered, fixing Alex with a piercing gaze. "You gonna try to guilt the information out of me too? Or are you the 'bad cop' who gets to beat it out of me?"
Alex walked over to a small hidden panel in the far wall, pressing a button to turn off the intercom/recorder. "Clover's in Lyrobia... I saw her get on the plane, and one of the plane tickets you bought with Sam's card was used." Alex replied. Mandy blinked and cocked her head to the side in confusion.
"If you know... what's with the interrogation here? Are you having fun humiliating me or something?"
"Because I don't want to find Clover, not yet." Alex looked back at her with a steady gaze. "Not until she has a chance to prove her innocence."
Mandy nodded. "So you're hiding an important piece of information from the American government? That's damn gutsy... or stupid."
"I could say the same about you." Alex pointed out. "But the point is I want you to know I'll try to make everything as easy for you as I can without giving myself away and landing us both in prison cells."
"Thanks, but I'll be fine." Mandy smirked. "I'm not a fragile peach who bruises under the slightest mental pressure." Alex nodded and turned to leave after resetting the intercom and recorder to their normal settings. Mandy watched her leave the room silently, lowering her head to her chest to rest again after the mental strain she'd already had to endure.
TO BE CONTINUED
"When my daddy finds out about this, it'll be your head." Mandy's voice was carried into the small observation room through the intercom set up in her interrogation chamber. Sam watched from behind a one-way mirror as Mandy fumed at the WOOHP agent from her seat at the end of a long table, gripping the edge tight enough to turn her knuckles white. Alex stood beside Sam, talking into her compowder on a somewhat unrelated topic. They were both wearing their WOOHP uniforms.
"Listen, if you tell us where she went, we promise to give you immunity for the crimes you committed." The interrogating officer offered for the fifth time. Mandy howled in frustration and pounded her fists on the table.
"I told you I'm not telling you! Now either let me go or lock me up!" Mandy screamed angrily. Sam shook her head. Why was Mandy fighting so vehemently on Clover's side? Weren't they enemies? Didn't Clover invite the violence at Mandy's house that brought it crumbling to the ground?
"Yeah, I got it." Alex said into her compowder. She pushed it closed as Sam looked over at her curiously. "Your credit card was used for two tickets to Lyrobia, but neither one of them was ever used." Alex told her.
"So they bought two tickets and decided to stay in the United States after all? I don't buy it." Sam replied. "They must have been trying to leave the country..."
"Maybe it's a trick?" Alex suggested. Sam nodded. It was completely possible for Clover to have used cash or something... but that didn't make any sense. If she had Sam's credit card why bother using anything else? To confuse her? Maybe the information was wrong...
Sam quickly shook her head. There was no reason for the airport to lie, and she trusted Alex with her life. They must have bought the tickets to Lyrobia in order to hide their real destination through the credit report. Clover wasn't typically so devious and underhanded... but she typically wasn't a murderer or a thief either.
"I told you to bug off!" Mandy's shout echoed through the intercom, interrupting Sam's thought process. Sam growled and left the observation room, walking up to the guard in front of the interrogation room.
"You think I could try to get some information out of her for a while?" The guard looked at her curiously. "We have to find Clover as quickly as possible."
"If you want, good luck though. We have to be extra gentle with this one." The guard told her as he moved into the interrogation room to get the other interrogator out. Alex walked up beside Sam, but Sam grabbed her shoulder, pushing her back.
"Stay out here Alex, I want to talk with her." Sam stated as the guards left the door to the interrogation room open behind them. Sam walked inside, pushing it closed behind her and leaning against it. She stared at Mandy, who looked her up and down with a smirk.
"Look who's the big fancy spy." Mandy scoffed. "Honestly, a bright green jumpsuit? Shouldn't a spy wear black or something?"
"I'm not here to discuss fashion with you Mandy." Sam calmly walked to the chair opposite her at the table and sat down. "We've never been friends, but I need you to help me out here."
"Yeah, your government buddy said the same thing. Why should I respond to you any differently?" Mandy asked. Sam clenched one fist in frustration, glaring at Mandy across the table. "What, are you gonna hit me? Please, my dad would have you hung and your corpse left to dry in the sun." Sam's hand relaxed, resting on the table while Sam closed her eyes. "Are you done already?"
"This isn't a game. The man I thought of as my own father is dead Mandy." Sam opened her eyes, staring into Mandy's large violet orbs. "You think I want to believe Clover did it? Do you think I like hunting down my best friend in the world?"
"I think you enjoy having me under your power." Mandy scoffed.
"Right now I'd love nothing more than to be at home curling up with a good book." Sam sneered, pushing herself to her feet. "But instead I'm here trying to get you to help me find Clover." She walked around the table, putting one hand on it and leaning against it. "Now work with me here. For all we know Clover could be planning something..."
"Best friend in the world my ass." Mandy sneered, staring into Sam's eyes with contempt. "You're talking about hunting her down like some kind of dog. Doesn't sound like you feel like a friend to her."
"The facts are what they are. No amount of feelings can change them." Sam countered.
"Facts can be forged."
"And feelings can be manipulated." Sam stared at Mandy steadily, not looking away for even an instant. Mandy stared back, as if trying to force Sam to see things her way. Finally Mandy looked down at the table while Sam let a smirk creep across her lips. "And if anyone knows something about manipulation, it's you."
"Fuck you." Mandy spat, looking up at her again with a disgusted smirk. "Sure I manipulate the pitiful morons who let me control them. But at least I never turned on any of them the way you're turning on Clover."
"SHE turned on ME!" Sam slammed her fist down on the table, causing Mandy to jump in surprise as the bang echoed throughout the empty room. "She's a killer Mandy. All of the evidence points to it. I can't fight hard facts, and neither can you. Now tell me where she went."
"I don't really care if she did kill some stupid old guy." Mandy sneered. "I'm not telling you anything, because you piss me off." She yelped when Sam's hand lashed out, grabbing the front of her purple vest and pulling her face close to Sam's. Her emerald green eyes were narrowed dangerously. Mandy stared back, not giving an inch even as Sam's grip tightened.
Sam reached into one pocket of her jumpsuit, taking out a picture and slamming it down on the table. She grabbed a fistful of Mandy's hair and shoved Mandy's face roughly down toward it. Mandy slammed her hands into the table to keep her forehead from slamming into it, struggling to move away from it though Sam kept her there.
"That is the 'stupid old guy' that died last week Mandy." Sam told her darkly, her fist clutching Mandy's dark hair tightly. "I spent the last year looking up to him. He was always there for us, and we were always there for him. Now he's DEAD, and I don't even really know why. All evidence points to Clover's involvement, so I WILL find Clover and find out what's going on."
Mandy growled, her fingernails scraping against the steel table as she struggled to move away from the picture. "Let me go..."
Sam bent down beside her, yelling in her ear. "Tell me where Clover is!"
"NO!" Mandy squeezed her eyes shut in pain as Sam's grip on her hair tightened. Mandy refused to cry out in pain, she wasn't about to give Sam that satisfaction. The contest of wills continued for several minutes until Sam finally grunted and thrust Mandy back by her hair, slamming her into the back of her seat.
"You'll talk eventually... even if we have to get your father's permission to take more drastic measures..." Sam pushed herself away from Mandy, marching to the door.
"Go ahead, as if Clover was ever really your friend anyway. I once thought I was her worst enemy at school... but it looks like you fill that position nicely." Mandy stated. Sam ignored her, leaving the room and pulling the door closed behind her, leaning against it. Alex was leaning against the wall beside the door, watching her.
"Get anything?" Alex asked softly.
"No... we're gonna have to call him." Sam pushed herself away from the door, running one hand through her long red hair. Alex nodded and turned to follow her down the hall, but stopped and watched Sam walk ahead. She looked back at the interrogation room door and approached it, pushing it open. Mandy was sitting on the other side of the desk with her head down wearily. The moment she heard the door Mandy lifted her head in proud defiance.
"You want a turn now?" Mandy sneered, fixing Alex with a piercing gaze. "You gonna try to guilt the information out of me too? Or are you the 'bad cop' who gets to beat it out of me?"
Alex walked over to a small hidden panel in the far wall, pressing a button to turn off the intercom/recorder. "Clover's in Lyrobia... I saw her get on the plane, and one of the plane tickets you bought with Sam's card was used." Alex replied. Mandy blinked and cocked her head to the side in confusion.
"If you know... what's with the interrogation here? Are you having fun humiliating me or something?"
"Because I don't want to find Clover, not yet." Alex looked back at her with a steady gaze. "Not until she has a chance to prove her innocence."
Mandy nodded. "So you're hiding an important piece of information from the American government? That's damn gutsy... or stupid."
"I could say the same about you." Alex pointed out. "But the point is I want you to know I'll try to make everything as easy for you as I can without giving myself away and landing us both in prison cells."
"Thanks, but I'll be fine." Mandy smirked. "I'm not a fragile peach who bruises under the slightest mental pressure." Alex nodded and turned to leave after resetting the intercom and recorder to their normal settings. Mandy watched her leave the room silently, lowering her head to her chest to rest again after the mental strain she'd already had to endure.
TO BE CONTINUED